Representatives of the AOC Côtes du Rhône took stock of an eventful year for the sector and the prospects for the appellation. The fight now is remuneration for which a completely new announcement was made: a floor sales price for a hectoliter of red.
The Union of Côtes du Rhône Winegrowers, InterRhône and the Union des Maisons des Vins du Rhône (UMVR, representing the trade) representing the Côtes du Rhône appellation held a joint press conference on Tuesday in Avignon. “It’s a particularly eventful year which is coming to an end for the sector, particularly for the second AOC vineyard in France”indicated the presidents of the three bodies.
Examples in figures, the volumes released from the cellars of the appellation's vineyards have suffered a drop of 7%. Overall sales of appellation wines show a decline of 5% in mass distribution. Wines from the Rhône valley fared better than other wine-growing regions (-3.4% in volume, – 1% in value). Throughout the CDR appellation area, “the vineyard has lost more than 650,000 hl in ten years”.
“Signs of recovery”
The three leaders wanted to share encouraging signals : “The new 2024-25 campaign shows signs of recovery. From August to October, cellar releases of red Côtes du Rhône increased by 22%.”
When it comes to exports, the appellation shows some resistance (less 3% of turnover).
On stocks, the situation is now considered healthy. “We have regained our production balance through all the cumulative sacrifices of all our producers whom I would like to saluteshares Damien Gilles, president of the winegrowers' union and winegrower in the Rhone Gard. We are going to enter the fight for remuneration and obtain fair and honorable remuneration for all Côtes du Rhône producers. Today, we are working on the Egalim law. The problem is that we cannot put it in place because of the succession of ineffective governments for more than a year,” he protests. A fight that will be waged “for the salvation and honor of the producers. No longer sell at low prices wines that took them a year to produce. We have been undermined by the imbalance between supply and demand. We did what was necessary to rebalance. The lights are green so that winegrowers can make a decent living from their profession.” hopes Damien Gilles.
A minimum sales price set at 120 euros per hectoliter of red
With one voice, Damien Gilles, the president of InterRhône Philippe Pellaton and the president of UMVR Samuel Montgermont announce a minimum sales price of €120 per hectoliter of red. “It's the minimum to continue writing the history of our appellation. It's not to live but to survive […].It's against the law but the distress in which we live is such…continues Damien Gilles who has vines in Pont-Saint-Esprit, Carsan and Saint-Paulet-de-Caisson. J I cannot let this story end. It would be a betrayal of the generations who preceded me, my family who gave me these lands as an inheritance.” So far, “we oscillate in sales patterns ubuesques, between €70 and €200 per hectolitre”. The president of the Winegrowers' Union calls for “unity so that this price is respected”.
Another problem: water
On the uprooting, “Gard serves as the leader of our appellation”, underlined on the sidelines of the meeting Damien Gilles. Across the department, 4,015 hectares of vines (AOC, AOP, Villages, etc.) will disappear in the coming months, out of a total of 55,000 hectares. “We will lose a lot of surface area, it will be visible to the naked eye.” Vaucluse will uproot 1,017 ha (out of a total of 45,000 ha), Drôme 889 ha and Ardèche 258 ha.
Damien Gilles recalls that “the situation is dramatic economically, particularly in the Rhone Gard”. Irony of fate : “We are close to the Rhône and are one of the poorest areas in terms of water supply. Structural projects are being set up, but it is not going fast enough.” The Rhone Gard Agglomerate is indeed carrying out a substantial project. It would even concern 105 municipalities,“for a rebound in agricultural activity which requires the structuring of the sector, water and labor”.
A new association to defend the interests of public institutions
Finally, representatives of professionals from the Rhône valley will continue their action to advance work on the Egalim law. In July, the general association of wine production in the Rhône valley (AGPV) was born, it brings together unions, cooperative cellars, independent winegrowers and chambers of agriculture, in order to bring a single voice for“defend the interests of winegrowers with public institutions”.
